00:01Past President Abdul Hadi Awang says wrongdoing at Tabong Haji is being blown
00:05out of proportion to tarnish Malay Muslims, while bigger issues in other
00:10institutions receive less attention. The Marang MP acknowledged that there may
00:14have been misappropriation and wrongdoing in the Pilgrims Fund. However, Hadi
00:19claimed bigger issues in GLCs and other institutions were not receiving the same
00:24level of attention, despite allegedly taking place on a larger scale. In a
00:29Facebook post, Hadi argued that Tabong Haji had become the main topic of
00:33discussion because its Islamic identity made it a target. He also claimed that
00:38the misconduct of a few individuals was being singled out to tarnish the
00:41reputation of Malay Muslims, while the contributions of those who built the
00:45institution were being forgotten. The government declassified the Tabong Haji
00:49RCI report on July 29, covering the Pilgrims Fund's management, operations and
00:55assets from 2014 to 2020. The report found that Tabong Haji had concealed its true
01:01financial position, failed to record losses from troubled investments, and used
01:06creative accounting to justify annual profit distributions. The Commission also
01:11traced Tabong Haji's financial problems to political interference in board
01:15appointments, unsustainable hibah payouts, and softened audit findings over concerns
01:20about depositor confidence. The report's declassification led to investigations by
01:25police and MACC. A special day one raya sitting was held last week to debate the
01:30report, but most Perikatan National MPs boycotted the proceedings in protest of
01:35Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's absence as he recovered from surgery.
01:38Radina Rakama FMT
